Pere Marquette City Park

Pere Marquette Park – Ste. Genevieve’s Hidden Gem

Named for Father Jacques Marquette, the famous 17th-century French Jesuit missionary and explorer who journeyed down the Mississippi River with Louis Joliet in 1673, Pere Marquette Park offers locals and visitors a peaceful retreat where recreation, natural beauty, and open space come together. This scenic city park embodies the kind of unpretentious, family-friendly outdoor space that makes small-town life so appealing—and remarkably, it remains one of Ste. Genevieve’s best-kept secrets, seeing relatively light usage despite its excellent facilities.

A Park That Invites You to Linger

Pere Marquette Park provides exactly what a good city park should: ample space for play, rest, and recreation without the crowds and over-programming that can make urban parks feel more stressful than relaxing. The light usage means you’re likely to find the park peaceful and uncrowded, whether you’re visiting on a weekday afternoon or a weekend morning.

This isn’t a park where you’ll struggle to find parking, wait for playground equipment, or feel like you’re competing for space. Instead, you’ll discover room to spread out, breathe deeply, and enjoy outdoor time at your own pace. For families with young children, this spaciousness is particularly valuable—kids can run, explore, and play with the freedom that ample space provides.

Perfect for That Leisurely Picnic

There’s something wonderful about a proper picnic—not a rushed sandwich eaten in the car, but an actual meal enjoyed outdoors, with time to relax and savor both food and setting. Pere Marquette Park provides the perfect venue for this increasingly rare pleasure.

Find a shady spot, spread out your blanket or settle at a picnic table, and enjoy a meal with family or friends. The scenic surroundings create a backdrop that makes even simple food taste better. Watch clouds drift by, listen to birdsong, feel the breeze, and remember what it’s like to eat without checking your phone every thirty seconds.

The park’s peaceful atmosphere enhances the experience. You’re not competing with crowds or noise, just enjoying good company in a pleasant outdoor setting. Pack a lunch from one of Ste. Genevieve’s excellent local restaurants or delis, bring a cooler with your own homemade favorites, or keep it simple with sandwiches and fruit. However elaborate or simple your picnic, Pere Marquette Park provides the space and ambiance to make it memorable.

Open Space for Active Play

For children, Pere Marquette Park offers something precious that’s increasingly hard to find in modern life: genuine open space where they can run, jump, explore, and play without constant boundaries and restrictions.

Modern play structures provide climbing, sliding, and imaginative play opportunities, offering age-appropriate challenges that help kids develop physical skills and confidence. But equally important is the simple open space surrounding the playground—room for kids to chase each other, play catch, fly kites, kick balls, or engage in the kind of unstructured, self-directed play that child development experts increasingly recognize as essential.

Parents and caregivers can relax on benches, enjoying the pleasure of watching children play while actually being able to keep an eye on them—the park’s layout and light usage make supervision manageable without being stressful.

Excellent Disc Golf Course

One of Pere Marquette Park’s standout features is its excellent disc golf course (also known as frisbee golf), which has earned praise from local players and visiting enthusiasts alike. For those unfamiliar with the sport, disc golf follows the same basic concept as traditional golf—players throw specialized flying discs toward targets (metal baskets) in as few throws as possible—but it’s far more accessible, affordable, and beginner-friendly.

The Pere Marquette course offers:

Quality Course Design: Thoughtfully laid out holes that provide variety and challenge while remaining playable for beginners. The course takes advantage of the park’s natural features, incorporating trees, elevation changes, and open spaces to create interesting shots.

Well-Maintained Targets: Proper disc golf baskets that catch discs reliably and are easy to locate.

Scenic Setting: Playing disc golf at Pere Marquette means enjoying Ste. Genevieve’s natural beauty while you play. The combination of physical activity, outdoor setting, and the satisfying challenge of improving your throws creates an experience that’s both relaxing and engaging.

Accessibility: Unlike private courses or those requiring fees, Pere Marquette’s disc golf course is free and open to all. Whether you’re a serious player working on your technique or a family trying the sport for the first time, you’re welcome.

Light Usage Advantage: The park’s relatively light usage means disc golfers rarely face crowding or long waits. You can play at your own pace, take time to practice tricky shots, and generally enjoy the course without feeling rushed by groups behind you.

For visitors to Ste. Genevieve, the disc golf course offers a perfect activity for an afternoon—active enough to be engaging, leisurely enough to be relaxing, and different enough from typical tourist activities to create variety in your trip. For locals, it’s a free recreational resource that provides ongoing enjoyment and the chance to develop a skill.

Don’t have discs? Some local sporting goods stores may carry them, or you might find that fellow players at the park are happy to let you try their extras—disc golf culture tends to be welcoming and generous toward newcomers.

Sports Fields for Organized Play

Pere Marquette Park features both soccer and baseball fields, providing venues for organized youth sports, casual pickup games, or family recreation:

Soccer Fields: Whether it’s a youth league game, a group of friends getting together for a scrimmage, or parents kicking the ball around with kids, the soccer fields accommodate various levels of play. The open, maintained grass provides safe playing surface for running and ball handling.

Baseball Fields: America’s pastime continues at Pere Marquette, where baseball and softball games bring teams together. The fields serve youth leagues while also being available for informal games—grab some friends, bring gloves and a ball, and enjoy an afternoon channeling your inner major leaguer.

These facilities mean that Pere Marquette Park serves the community’s organized recreation needs while remaining accessible for casual use. It’s not locked down for exclusive events—there’s room for both structured leagues and spontaneous play.

Essential Amenities

Pere Marquette Park includes restrooms, that essential facility that makes extended park visits comfortable, especially for families with young children. Having actual restroom facilities (rather than just porta-potties or nothing at all) makes the park more welcoming and usable for longer visits.

This amenity, combined with the picnic areas, playgrounds, and sports facilities, means Pere Marquette can genuinely serve as a destination for several hours rather than just a quick stop. Pack for an afternoon, use the facilities as needed, and settle in for quality outdoor time.

A Park for All Seasons

While summer might be peak season for park use, Pere Marquette offers year-round appeal:

Spring: Watch the park come alive with blooming trees and returning birds. The fresh green grass and moderate temperatures create ideal conditions for picnics and outdoor play.

Summer: Take advantage of longer days and warmer weather. The shade trees provide relief from heat, and the open spaces catch cooling breezes.

Fall: Enjoy stunning autumn colors as leaves change. The cooler temperatures are perfect for disc golf or active play, and the beauty of fall foliage adds special charm to your visit.

Winter: On milder winter days, the park offers space for outdoor activity when cabin fever sets in. Bundle up for a brisk disc golf round or let kids burn energy on the playground.

Why Light Usage Is Actually a Feature

In our crowded, overscheduled world, Pere Marquette Park’s relatively light usage isn’t a bug—it’s a feature. This is a place where you can actually find space and peace, where your visit isn’t defined by navigating crowds or competing for amenities.

The light usage reflects Ste. Genevieve’s small-town character: there simply aren’t massive populations creating constant demand. But it also means that visitors—both local and from elsewhere—can enjoy the park in a more relaxed, authentic way.

Think of it as the anti-urban-park experience. No fighting for parking. No waiting in line. No feeling like you’re just one of thousands. Just a pleasant city park that welcomes you without overwhelming you.

Perfect for Visitors

If you’re visiting Ste. Genevieve for its historic sites and downtown attractions, Pere Marquette Park offers a welcome change of pace:

• Break from History Tourism: After touring historic houses and museums, stretch your legs and breathe fresh air at the park.
• Family Balance: If traveling with children, the park provides kid-friendly space where they can be active and loud after being asked to be careful and quiet in historic buildings.
• Local Experience: See where Ste. Genevieve residents actually spend leisure time, not just tourist attractions.
• Exercise: Get some activity between meals at local restaurants—disc golf, in particular, provides moderate exercise disguised as fun.
• Outdoor Time: Connect with the natural setting that makes the Mississippi River Valley so beautiful.

A Park That Honors Its Namesake

Father Jacques Marquette, for whom the park is named, was a remarkable figure in 17th-century exploration and French colonial history. His 1673 expedition with Louis Joliet down the Mississippi River represented one of the first European explorations of the great river, and his detailed journals provided valuable information about the geography, Native peoples, and natural resources of the region.

Marquette combined the roles of explorer, missionary, and scholar—mapping new territories while seeking to understand and convert the Native peoples he encountered. His legacy is complex, like much of colonial history, but his courage, dedication, and contributions to geographic knowledge are undeniable.

Naming this park for Pere Marquette connects Ste. Genevieve’s recreational space to the town’s French colonial heritage and the broader history of European exploration in the Mississippi Valley. It’s a reminder that this region’s history stretches back beyond the town’s founding to those early explorers who first traveled these waters and encountered the indigenous peoples who had called this land home for millennia.

Plan Your Visit

Location: Check with the Ste. Genevieve Visitor Center or city offices for specific location and directions

Hours: Open during daylight hours (typical for city parks)

Admission: Free

Parking: On-site parking available

What to Bring:

• Picnic supplies (food, blanket, cooler)
• Sports equipment (soccer balls, baseballs, gloves)
• Disc golf discs (if you have them)
• Sun protection (sunscreen, hats)
• Water bottles
• Camera for capturing family fun

Facilities:

• Playground equipment
• Picnic areas
• Disc golf course
• Soccer fields
• Baseball fields
• Restrooms

Tips:

• Visit during weekday mornings or early afternoons for maximum peace and quiet
• Bring your own disc golf equipment or be prepared to improvise
• Check weather forecasts and plan accordingly
• Consider combining your park visit with downtown dining or historic site tours

Pere Marquette Park represents small-town recreation at its best: unpretentious, accessible, genuinely useful space that serves the community while welcoming visitors. Whether you’re a disc golf enthusiast seeking a quality course, a family looking for outdoor play space, or simply someone who appreciates a peaceful park where you can spread out and relax, Pere Marquette delivers.

Come discover this hidden gem where open space, recreational opportunities, and scenic beauty combine to create the kind of park experience that’s increasingly rare—unhurried, uncrowded, and genuinely refreshing.